Moves Don’t Get Knicks and Nets Too Far

It was one of the wildest N.B.A. trade deadline days in recent memory, with 11 transactions taking place across the league before the 3 p.m. cutoff time, and both New York teams had a small hand in it.

Even though the moves by the Knicks and the Nets on Thursday appeared to improve the overall states of both teams, neither quite accomplished what had seemed to be its primary objectives heading into the day.

The Knicks, who have tumbled to a 10-43 record this season, have long had their eyes on next season and have looked to gain as much payroll flexibility as possible before the coming off-season. In a minor victory, they sent point guard Pablo Prigioni, 37, to the Houston Rockets, receiving in return two second-round draft picks and Alexey Shved, who has an expiring contract. Prigioni was no more than a fringe player in Coach Derek Fisher’s rotation this season, and $300,000 of his contract next season was guaranteed.

The Knicks, though, would have much rather traded another of their veteran point guards, Jose Calderon, who has two more seasons left on his contract and is owed $15.1 million in that time.

Phil Jackson, the Knicks’ president, seemed to have accepted that Calderon, 33, would not be traded before the deadline. He said at a news conference Wednesday that there was not much interest in Calderon from other teams, and he said that Calderon would need to take on more responsibility as the team plays its final 29 games this season without an established leader.

“He’s a player that I would call a middle-aged N.B.A. player, who has great capabilities of being the glue that holds a team together,” Jackson said of Calderon on Wednesday.

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Brook Lopez (11) remained the Nets' longest-tenured player, despite trade rumors.CreditMichelle V. Agins/The New York Times

The Nets got a bit younger and saved some money when they traded forward Kevin Garnett, 38, to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Thaddeus Young, a 26-year-old forward averaging 14.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists. Garnett, who waived his no-trade clause, was averaging 6.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists.

Garnett began his career with Minnesota, playing there for 12 seasons before he was traded to the Boston Celtics in 2007.

Considered in a vacuum, the transaction made the Nets a better team. But the Nets paid a high price for Garnett and Paul Pierce before the 2013-14 season when they sent three first-round draft picks, and the right to swap a fourth one, to the Celtics. The Nets declined to re-sign Pierce before this season, and Garnett’s departure signaled the end of a fruitless blockbuster gamble.

Moving Garnett was not among the Nets’ top priorities. As the team struggled this season, all three of the Nets’ highly paid stars — Deron Williams, Joe Johnson and Brook Lopez — were mentioned in seemingly endless trade talks and rumors. The Nets are 21-32 this season, the roster has not jelled, and it has become obvious that the organization is willing to break up its core for a fresh start.

The spotlight eventually centered on Lopez. There were reports on Thursday that said Lopez — the Nets’ second-leading scorer (15.3) and third-leading rebounder (6.2) — was close to being traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder. But point guard Reggie Jackson, who would have been the centerpiece of a return package from the Thunder, ended up being traded to the Detroit Pistons, and Lopez remained with the Nets.

The Nets drafted Lopez in 2008, and over that time, and particularly in recent seasons, he has been the subject of trade rumors. He has generally deflected such chatter with humor and has gone about his business without much fuss. “I’ve been on the block for about six and a half years,” Lopez joked last month.

For now, Lopez is the longest-tenured Nets player. For all the debate about how the Nets would be without him, he has outlasted six head coaches and dozens of teammates. He has a player option worth $16.7 million for next season.

In a daylong game of N.B.A. musical chairs, both the Knicks and the Nets would probably have liked to made a few more moves.

A version of this article appears in print on , Section B, Page 12 of the New York edition with the headline: Moves Don’t Get Knicks and Nets Too Far. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe